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WASHINGTON (AP) – April 14, 2016 – Average long-term U.S. mortgage rates edged down this week to their lowest levels of the year, offering a continued incentive for purchasing during the spring home-buying season.The benchmark 30-year fixed-rate loan touched its lowest point in nearly three years, since May 2013. Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday that the average slipped to 3.58 percent from 3.59 percent last week. The key rate stood at 3.67 percent a year ago.
The average rate on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages declined to 2.86 percent from 2.88 percent last week.

The continued strong demand for U.S. government bonds, spurred by indications that the Federal Reserve won’t raise the interest rates it controls any time soon, has kept prices of the bonds at high levels. The bonds’ yields, moving in the opposite direction from their prices and influencing mortgage rates, have remained at low levels.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury bond stood at 1.76 percent Wednesday, unchanged from a week earlier. The yield rose to 1.78 percent Thursday morning.

To calculate average mortgage rates, Freddie Mac surveys lenders across the country at the beginning of each week. The average doesn’t include extra fees, known as points, which most borrowers must pay to get the lowest rates. One point equals 1 percent of the loan amount.

The average fee for a 30-year mortgage was unchanged from last week at 0.5 point. The fee for a 15-year loan rose to 0.5 point from 0.4 point.

Rates on adjustable five-year mortgages averaged 2.84 percent this week, up from 2.82 percent last week. The fee fell to 0.4 point from 0.5 point.

WASHINGTON – April 14, 2016 – With demand exceeding supply in markets across the U.S., homebuyers may face an uphill battle to find the perfect home this spring.

Total housing inventory at the end of February was 1.88 million existing homes available for sale – 1.1 percent lower year-to-year and at 4.4 month supply at the current sales pace (4.5 months in Florida), which is below the six-month supply that most experts consider a balanced market between buyers and sellers.

“When there is more demand than inventory, homes sell quickly, prices rise and bidding wars can start,” says National Association of Realtors® (NAR) President Tom Salomone, broker-owner of Real Estate II Inc. in Coral Springs, Florida. “A Realtor with an ABR (Accredited Buyer’s Representative) designation is a homebuyer’s upper hand; they understand local markets and can negotiate on behalf of their buyer-clients.”

Salomone says, “Buying a home is often one of the biggest decisions of a person’s life, and having a Realtor in their corner is the ultimate advantage. They are there to guide consumers through the complexities of this life-changing transaction.”

NAR’s 2015 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers asked recent homebuyers what they look for when deciding on a real estate agent: 53 percent said someone who could help them find the right home to purchase, and 12 percent said someone who can help them negotiate the terms of sale. The report found that homebuyers look at a median of 10 houses before deciding on one to purchase, and the typical search lasts 10 weeks.

“Having a real estate expert with specific knowledge of the local market and purchase process can mean the difference between a homebuyer getting that 10th house and having to search for another,” says Salomone.